Today is the memorial of St. Francis of Assisi. Our Lady of Perpetual Help is our patron saint of the diocese, but St. Francis is our secondary patron. Happy feast day to the parishes named after St. Francis in Munjor, Norton and St. Francis, along with the Comeau Catholic Campus Center in Hays. There is a great Audio Drama called Brother Francis: The Barefoot Saint of Assisi, that won the 2018 Audio Publishers Association award for Best Audio Drama. You can listen to the story on Formed.org.
In 1571, Turkish Muslims wanted to overtake Europe. A battle was taking place in the seas in which the Christians were greatly outnumbered. Pope Pius V invited people to pray the Rosary. On October 7, the wind changed, and the Battle of Lepanto was won. The Holy Father designated that day as Our Lady of Victory. Today, it is known as Our Lady of the Rosary. G.K. Chesterton wrote a great poem called Lepanto which you can listen to on Formed.org, along with hearing some commentary on the battle and the poem.
In a similar vein, our Holy Father, Pope Francis, has called for October 7 to be a Global Day of Prayer fasting due to escalating conflicts and serious tensions in the Holy Land. Please join me in doing this. The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa has also issued a statement and written a Prayer for peace that is worth a read HERE. The Holy Father is going to the St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome to pray the rosary for peace in the evening of October 6.
Speaking of the Rosary, October is traditionally the Month of the Rosary. For the last several years our diocese has participated in the annual nationwide Rosary Congress which runs in our diocese from October 5 – 11. During the Rosary Congress a Rosary is said in Adoration every hour. Please join in if you’re able. The sites are as follows:
Found this quote from St. Padre Pio to be appropriate for our times: “Today’s society does not pray. That is why it is falling apart.” Prayer is more powerful than anything and brings peace to our hearts.
We have a special Vietnamese Community in Salina. This Sunday evening at 6 pm at St. Mary’s Parish in Salina, I will celebrate the Mass with the Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Orange, California, Bishop Thanh Thai Nguyen. He will be in Wichita for the weekend, and I invited him to come to Salina. The readings and prayers for the Mass will be spoken sometimes in Vietnamese and other times in English. All are welcome to attend.
There will be a second collection in your parish sometime during the month of October to support the Hurricane Helene relief efforts through Catholic Charities, USA. This assistance, coordinated through CCUSA, will help local Catholic Charities agencies responding on the front lines.
In addition to being the Month of the Rosary, October is also Pro-life month. On Wednesday, October 9, Catholic high school students are coming to Salina for a pro-life day. On October 6 there are also many different Life Chains happening across the diocese that you can participate in. Find a Life Chain near you HERE.
There is a new film called Heart of a Servant: The Father Flanagan Storythat will be in theaters on October 8. Unfortunately, it will not be shown at any theaters in our diocese but keep this film in mind as something to watch in the future when it is more publicly available. Fr. Flanagan was the founder of Boys Town, which is still in operation today.
We’re blessed to have 14 seminarians studying for our diocese. I have had the opportunity to visit and talk with them recently. The one attribute that I find in all of them is joy!
My sister and brother-in-law are visiting in a couple of weeks. I look forward to hosting them.
Inspriation from the Saints:
Tomorrow, Saturday, October 5, is the memorial of St. Faustina. She is the instrument of Jesus’ desire to spread His mercy to the world. A priest shared a story about his bishop. A man came in to visit the bishop. He was angry and anxious about some things that were going on in the Church. At one point, the bishop looked at him, and said, “do you need to go to confession.” The man said, “yes, I do. It’s been a long time.” After that his mood changed and he was peaceful. In the sacrament of confession it is Jesus who forgives our sins and pours out His mercy upon us.
There are many great quotes from St. Faustina’s diary, here is one of my favorites:
Words of Jesus to St. Faustina: “Be always merciful as I am merciful. Love everyone out of love for Me, even your greatest enemies, so that My mercy may be fully reflected in your heart.’” (No. 1695)
